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• Trawl Catch Share Program Electronic Monitoring Workshop - The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Pacific Council) will hold a workshop February 25-27 on electronic monitoring in the rationalized groundfish trawl fishery, which is open to the public. Visit the Council's website to view the Electronic Monitoring Workshop notice.

02/12/13
 

• Council to Adopt Range of Alternatives for 2013 Ocean Salmon Fisheries for Public Review - The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) and its advisory bodies will meet March 6-11, 2013 in Tacoma, Washington to address issues related to salmon, Pacific halibut, groundfish, coastal pelagic species, highly migratory species, and habitat matters.
  
  Please visit the "Current Council Meeting" webpage for the meeting notice and agenda details.

02/06/13
 

• Ad Hoc Amendment 24 Workgroup Webinar - The Pacific Fishery Management Council’s (Council) Ad Hoc Amendment 24 Workgroup will hold an online webinar February 28 to review the proposed action and range of alternatives for setting harvest specifications and management measures for the Pacific Coast groundfish fishery for a ten-year period, 2015-2024. The online webinar is open to the public, although space for online access is limited to the first 100 participants.  To view the full webinar details, and to make webinar reservations, please see the Ad Hoc Amendment 24 Workgroup Webinar notice, available on the Council's website.

02/05/13
 

• The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces publication of a rule proposing cost recovery for the Pacific coast groundfish trawl rationalization program.  In accordance with the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the cost recovery program would collect mandatory fees of up to 3% of the ex-vessel value of groundfish by sector in the trawl rationalization program. Please see the proposed rule for details on the cost recovery program. NMFS will accept public comment on this proposed rule through 11:59 pm eastern time on March 18, 2013. Information on how to submit comments is available in the public notice and proposed rule.

02/01/13
 

• The Winter 2012-13 issue of Pacific Council News is now available on the Council's website.  You may view past issues of the Council's newsletter by visiting the Council's Newsletter Archives webpage.

01/22/13
 

• Workshop Notice - The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will convene a workshop to examine possiblities to improve management strategy concepts and elements currently in use for the Pacific sardine fishery.  Please see the notice "Workshop on Pacific Sardine Management Strategy and Harvest Control Parameters" available on the Council's website for complete details.

01/15/13
 

• NMFS has made available an updated PDF document that includes all of the Federal Pacific coast groundfish regulations, updated with changes through January 1, 2013, including new harvest specifications and management measures. The regulations are available on the NMFS NWR website at www.nwr.noaa.gov. Click on "Groundfish and Halibut", select "Groundfish Fishery Management" and then select "Regulations". http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Groundfish-Halibut/Groundfish-Fishery-Management/Regulations/upload/pink-pgs.pdf Please note that the utmost care has been taken to ensure the contents of this file match the Code of Federal Regulations; however, any discrepancies will be resolved in favor of the Code of Federal Regulations.

01/11/13
 

• The Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) is announcing the dates of availability for its annual preseason planning documents for ocean salmon fisheries. The reports will be posted electronically on the Council’s website, or you may request hard copies or CD-ROM copies of the reports by filling out and submitting the Salmon Management Documents Order Form.

The scheduled availability for the salmon preseason management documents are as follows:

Review of 2012 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
Available February 15

Preseason Report I - Stock Abundance Analysis and Environmental Assessment Part 1 for 2013 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
Available March 1

Preseason Report II - Proposed Alternatives and Environmental Assessment Part 2 for 2013 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
Available March 20

Preseason Report III - Council-Adopted Management Measures and Environmental Assessment Part 3 for 2013 Ocean Salmon Fisheries
Available April 22

01/08/13
 

• The National Marine Fisheries Service announces the release of additional whiting quota pounds to quota share permits/accounts in the Shorebased Individual Fishing Quota Program.  Please see the public notice for further information.

01/07/13
 

• The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the publication of a proposed rule in the Federal Register that proposes revisions to several portions of the Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery Trawl Rationalization Program regulations and requests comments on NMFS' preliminary conclusion that the Pacific Fishery Management Council's (Council's) selection of the no action alternative regarding the reconsideration of initial allocation of Pacific whiting is consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and other applicable law.

01/02/13
 

• NMFS announces the 2013-2014 changes to harvest specifications and commercial and recreational fishery management measures, effective on January 1, 2013. The PDF contains a description of the changes to Federal fishery management measures, including trip limit tables and brief summaries of any changes to recreational groundfish fishing regulations.

12/31/12
 

• The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announces the publication of a Federal Register notice establishing the 2013-2014 groundfish harvest specifications and management measures. A final rule, RIN 0648-BC35 has been filed with the Office of the Federal Register at 11:15 a.m. on December 28, 2012 and will publish on January 3, 2013. This final rule is effective on January 1, 2013 and can be found at: http://www.ofr.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2012-31134_PI.pdf The filed version that is linked above will only be available until the Federal Register notice publishes on January 3, 2013. The final Federal Register notice will be available on the NMFS Northwest Region website on January 3, 2013.

12/28/12
 

News Archive

• Proposed 10(J) Rule establishing a Nonessential Experimental Population of spring-run Chinook salmon and associated take provisions under section 4(d) - 01/15/13

• Pacific Coast Groundifsh 5-Year Review - 11/27/12

• Comment Letters Pertaining to the U.S.-Canada Albacore Treaty - 05/18/12

• Press Release - California Eelgrass Mitigation Policy - Draft - 05/14/12

• Vessel Identification Compliance Guide for West Coast Highly Migratory Species Fishermen - 01/27/11

• On August 15, 2011, the National Marine Fisheries Service published a Federal Register notice announcing the 5-year review reports for 6 species of ESA listed salmon and steelhead in California.

• Application for Exempted Fishing Permit; 2011 Pacific Sardine Fishing Season

• Seeking Comments on National Standard 10 Guidelines: the primary source of NMFS guidance for the consideration of safety issues in fishery management - 05/17/11

• Pacific Coast Salmon Essential Fish Habitat Five-year Review - Public Review Draft Report - 11/17/10

• 2010 Coastal Pelagic Species Catch Share Workshop Proceedings - 11/09/10

• Preliminary Proposals for Adjustments of Various OCAP RPA Actions - 11/08/10

• Fishing Restrictions in the Longline and Purse Seine Fisheries in the Eastern Pacific Ocean in 2009 – 2011

• Instructions for U.S. Albacore Vessels Wanting to Fish in Canadian Waters - 2010 (PDF)

• Guide for Complying with the Vessel Fishing Requirements of the U.S.-Canada Albacore Treaty - April 2010 (PDF)

• Application for Exempted Fishing Permit; 2010 Pacific Sardine Fishing Season; Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery Management Plan - 05/27/10 (PDF)

• NMFS San Joaquin River Spring-run Chinook Salmon Reintroduction - 04/15/10

• FERC Watershed Profiles - 03/24/10

• Final Klamath Project Operations Biological Opinion - 03/18/10

• RiverRAT, a science synthesis and tools for evaluating effects of stream management actions - 01/25/10 (PDF)

• Report from a symposium on the importance of floodplain for juvenile salmonid rearing, and the potential of abandoned gravel pits - 01/25/10 (PDF)

• NMFS Central Valley Salmon and Steelhead Recovery Plan Public Review Draft - 10/07/09

• California/Oregon Drift Gillnet Fishery

• California Pelagic Longline Fishery

• North-Central California Coast Salmonid Watershed Characterizations

• NOAA Fisheries Report to the Board of Forestry on Salmonid Enumeration (PDF)

• Southern California Steelhead Range Extension Notice (PDF)

• Caulerpa In Southern California Coastal Waters

• Plastic Perils of the Pacific - A short film for kids

• Sediment Removal Guidelines (PDF)

• San Francisco Bay Environmental Work Windows for Dredging and Disposal

• NMFS Biological and Conference Opinion on the Long-Term Operation of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project and Related Documents - 06/04/09

• NMFS Draft 2008 Biological Opinion on the Long-Term Central Valley Project and State Water Project Operation, Criteria, and Plan 12/11/08 (PDF)
  • NMFS Draft OCAP Cover Letter 12/11/08 (PDF)

• Russian River Biological Opinion - 10/01/08 (PDF)
  • Cover Letter (PDF)

• Final Opinion - Vern Freeman Diversion Dam - 07/23/08 (PDF)

• Final Opinion - Santa Felicia Relicensing - 05/05/08 (PDF)

• Click Here for Information about the RC Programmatic Biological Opinion 06/21/06

• Scoping Report for the Mendocino Redwood Company HCP EIR/EIS (PDF)